Case studies

A skilful self-promoter exposed

We were contacted by a client who needed information about a Turkish subject, who was supposedly a prominent businessman involved in a number of high-profile merger and acquisition deals and who was also said to be well-connected in government circles. Our enquiries, made among highly-placed business journalists, politicians and finance professionals with expertise in the Turkish M&A sector, curiously revealed very little about the subject. As our investigation proceeded it became evident that the subject had been fabricating his achievements during media interviews, which had been taken at face value. Our client was grateful for the more accurate picture we provided.

Hidden ownership revealed 

Our client contacted us to carry out research into a telecommunications company. Our investigation succeeded in discovering previously unknown and critical information that exposed the irregular shareholder structure of the firm. The company had been established using holding companies registered in foreign jurisdictions to mask the ultimate beneficiaries, who were members of a highly placed political family. We were able to illustrate the complicity of a foreign go-between, linked to organised crime, who had in the past been embroiled in an embezzlement case implicating a former Prime Minister in his home country. Our findings turned our client’s previous perception of the company’s probity completely on its head.

Allegations of UN sanctions violations discovered

A major international bank asked us to review negative press coverage of a foreign businessman. Our investigation revealed that despite presenting himself as an exporter, he was better known in his country as an arms trader. We showed that he had been implicated in a high-profile scandal involving the violation of UN sanctions when selling arms to Iraq in exchange for oil, and that his family business had been accused of violating foreign exchange rules during other illegal arms transactions. Our database searches also discovered that he was identified as a politically exposed person. These findings were passed on to our client, who used them to determine whether to continue their dealings with the subject.

Bankruptcy uncovered in multi-jurisdiction case 

An investment bank asked us to carry out a due diligence assessment of a subject with a very limited public profile. Our investigation revealed that the subject had initiated an ambitious cultural project that had come to nothing, and also brought to light allegations that one of his associates in the project was a confidence trickster. Moreover, we discovered that the subject had a history of financial problems and had filed for bankruptcy in one jurisdiction while requesting a bank loan for a luxury purchase in another. Additionally, we showed that businesses he had established in several other countries had gone into liquidation before achieving any success. Our client thereby gained a clearer understanding of the subject’s business and credit record.

A businessman with ongoing legal problems

We were asked to conduct an inquiry into a Turkish businessman who had once served a prison sentence for fraud and embezzlement. Our client was interested to know whether the subject was still under investigation and whether his bankruptcy had been reversed. Our research not only discovered that the embezzlement charges against the subject were ongoing, but also that he had been implicated in a case involving a murder, accused of being party to organised crime, false accounting, tax fraud and suspicious loans, and of possibly helping a relative avoid arrest for a serious misdemeanour. Our client thus received the information they needed to decide whether to pursue a business relationship with the subject.

A better understanding of a national oil fund 

We were assigned by a large banking organisation to search out information regarding a multi-billion dollar oil fund. The fund had been the recipient of a UN award for transparency, accountability and responsiveness, and was seemingly compliant with standards of probity set by international associations. Nevertheless, our investigation unearthed information which raised serious concerns over the politicisation of the fund and its openness to manipulation by the country’s president, which had led to calls from international institutions for significant reform. Our report enabled our client to develop a more sophisticated understanding of the risks posed by the political and economic handling of oil revenues in the country in question.

A well-connected businessman

We were asked to provide an enhanced due diligence report on a highly prominent Asian businessman with close ties to a former president and other members of the ruling elite. Our research showed that the subject had a positive reputation in one jurisdiction for his philanthropic activities but in his home country was regarded with suspicion for a series of offences involving his companies. In particular he was held responsible for the collapse of a bank that he owned. By sifting through a great deal of information published in the media in several different countries, we were able to provide our client with a clear and succinct report on which to base a decision on how to proceed.

Abuse of office by an African politician

We were tasked with providing a Level Two enhanced due diligence report on an African politician who had been investigated in a Level One report a year earlier. Our clients wished to gain an understanding of claims that the subject had a conflict of interests and had been involved in profiteering, corruption and financial irregularities during his time as chairman of a development commission in an oil-rich region. Our report gave greater information about this issue, while also describing his involvement in an amnesty programme for militants in the region, during which time he was accused of colluding with rebels by offering bribes in exchange for political gain. This more detailed and updated intelligence proved invaluable to our clients.

A prominent PEP’s link to a high profile murder charge revealed

We were contacted by a major international bank which wished to investigate a prominent and politically exposed businessman. Our research uncovered media reports alleging that the subject had helped a family member evade a charge of murder that had taken place in another country, thereby triggering a protracted extradition process. Furthermore, we found evidence that he had breached UN arms sanctions and been complicit in the fraudulent allocation of important commodity contracts.